Love of Two Shadows
by Nightwillow7
Summary: "I guess what they say is true when you meet someone for the first time: You never know what you'll find, but when someone has meaning to you, never let them go because you could be lost in the dark forever without their light..."
1. The Nick of Time

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES!**

It was a dreary and cold autumn night in the city of New York. Overhead in the night sky, thunder roiled and lightning raked its way across the black divide. The rain fell in sheets, drenching the stony haven below it and all its denizens. Fluorescent lights were the only source of brightness along the criss-crossing streets and car headlights flooded the concrete as they zipped by, kicking up waves of water beginning to pool in the gutters. On a particular street corner, stood a young girl of at least seventeen. She possessed dark, ebony hair that ran to slightly past her shoulders and she also had a deep set of liquid silver eyes. That particular night, she chose to wear a dark scarlet turtleneck, a simple black skort that came just above her knees, and on her feet were a pair of black faux leather boots that brushed the tip of her skort. Over the entire outfit itself, was a thigh-length grey trench coat.

The girl scanned the now empty street opposite of her before trotting across the apartment complex waiting on the other side. Many windows glowed faintly, hinting to how many of its occupants were still awake among the majority who were tucked away smartly in their beds, awaiting the arrival of morning. Pulling her key from the pocket of her coat, the girl was about to allow herself in when she gave a small pause, feeling as if she was being watched. Silver eyes glance over her shoulder to see a hulking figure lurking in the shadows just where she had stood a moment before. The girl felt her heart quicken as heavy footsteps began to splash on the street and grow louder as they approached her. Adrenaline working, the girl had the key in the lock when a large hand fell on her shoulder.

"Hey there, sweet thing. What's a young lady like you doing outside all alone? I mean, look at you; you're soaked to the bone. Why don't you come back to my place and we'll find you something…'drier' to wear," the man whispered into her ear, breath laced with alcohol.

A cringe grew on the girl's face as the man slipped his hand onto hers holding the key and with a little force, pryed it away from the door. She struggled not to gag as his noxious breath reached her nose. Her brow knitted together as her mind rushed, forming a quick plan.

"Sir, I would advise you to rethink your actions before someone gets hurt," she whispered rather coolly to the burly male.

"Scared? Don't worry, I won't hurt you…much," he replied, tugging on the girl's arm to make her move.

"I wasn't referring to me, sir."

Making the first move, the girl used her free arm to slam an elbow into the man's gut followed by a swift boot heel to his foot. Yelping in pain, the girl's would be attacker backed off too blinded by the sudden pain to notice when she moved to retrieve her key that had clattered to the pavement below in the struggle. Far above the fight, a pair of figures watched from the apartment roof, as if waiting for something to happen.

"C'mon, we shoulda helped by now!" one barked rather angrily, leaning over the stone edge to peer down more.

"Cool it! Have you still not learned to not intervene when the situation _doesn't_ call for it? You'd think after years of training you'd have learned that by now," the second figure seethed, placing a firm hand on the other's shoulder.

"Whateva, that girl down there was about to be attacked and we coulda stopped it!"

A scowl appeared on his face as the other remained silent, watching as the girl scrambled in the dark for key down below. Her hand wrapped around the copper device and she made a dash for the door, only to be stopped and dragged to the ground by a hand to her ankle. A gasp of pain escaped her lips as her head made contact with the ground and her vision became obscured by the pain. Suddenly her sight was filled with the figure of the man as he picked himself up from the drenched street. His face revealed just how angry he had become at her attempt to stop him and he wanted to settle what had been started.

The girl soon found her hands pinned to the sidewalk as he leered down at her, so much that it made her shudder at the hungry look in his eyes.

"G-get off me…" she managed, head throbbing with each word.

"Shutup bitch, you've made me mad and now you need to be punished," he ordered.

The girl let her eyes fall shut as she waited for the inevitable, but it never came. One minute the man's full body weight is pressing on her torso, and the next: nothing. A single silver iris peeked beneath an eyelid as the girl looked to where he had gone. Just a few feet away there stood two figures towering above the unconscious man. One appeared to be holding a pair of identical blades in his hand and the other was content to just stand to the side cracking his knuckles triumphantly.

"_Did they…save me?"_ the girl thought wildly as she rose slowly off the ground when suddenly a new wave of pain hit her across the head and her hand flew up to the back of it to clench at an open wound.

When she pulled the hand away, much to her horror, she discovered it to be drenched in rain-mixed blood. Her bottom lip quivered as she let the rain wash the substance from her palm as she stumbled backwards into the open road, the other hand pressed her forehead. She could feel the red liquid trickle down her neck and black spots appeared in what little she could see. Stopping in the middle of the road's right lane, her entire body swayed as it threatened to keel over. The thunder overhead seemed deafening to the point for her where she did not hear the squeal of tires resisting against the slick pavement. Double white lights filled her eyes as a car headed her direction, but her senses were too fogged over to even muster the simple action of moving.

"Look out!" one of her saviors shouted from the sidewalk and he sprinted her way to try and divert the disastrous collision.

After a mere three seconds, his body collided with hers and his arms wrapped around her torso in a safe embrace before pushing off with his legs from the ground. All that the car hit was his back on the windshield as the pair flew over the speeding vehicle and then the two landed rather roughly on the pavement. He and the girl slid along the pavement for a moment before rolling to a stop. The automobile skidded to a halt and a panicked driver emerged from the driver's side door, but stumbled to a stop at the sight before him. No words came to him as he stared dead-eyed at the three. Slowly, the driver backed away to his car and he scrambled in, flooring the gas even before the door was shut.

"Hey bro, you ok?" the knuckle-cracking figure from before questioned hastily, helping the other to sit up.

"Ugh…I'm fine, but she isn't," he said hoarsely, loosening his arms to reveal the unconscious silver-eyed beauty.

"Let's get her back to the lair. Maybe Donny can do something," the burlier one said, helping his supposed brother to his feet.

"Right…"

Down into the sewers the trio had ventured and soon reached a highly concealed door that led to who-knows-where. The one leading entered a pin number into an access pad adjacent of the entrance and waited rather impatiently for the door to open. When it did he ushered the two behind him in quickly before heading in himself.

"Yo, Donny! Get out here!" the figure shouted, his voice echoing in the wide cavern.

From above on what appeared to be a second level, the aforementioned purple-banded turtle emerged from an unseen doorway, casually rubbing his eyes with clenched fists.

"Raph…do you have any *yawn* idea what time it is right now?" the olive green brother groaned as he jumped down to the lower level.

"Forget it bro, but we need your help! She needs your help," the now introduced Raphael stated, gesturing wildly to the limp girl within the grasp of the turtles' older brother, Leonardo, "She's hurt real bad Don and I think Leo is too!"

"I'll be fine, Raph. She comes first," the blue-banded turtle muttered, handing off the girl to Donny.

Donatello rushed the girl to his lab for a quick look over before the brainiac of the turtles set to work on mending the gash in her head. Leo leaned on the doorway entrance watching and waiting for news while Raph stood next to his older brother. Weary eyes followed each twist and turn of Donatello's hands as he cleaned the wound and began to wind a thick layering of gauge around the girl's head until he was satisfied with his handiwork. Cradling the girl tightly, the young turtle picked her up and turned to the others.

"That should do it for now, but it looks like she'll need stitches. It's late and she needs rest. Raph, can you get the cot from the clo-"

"She can have my room," Leo piped up suddenly.

"But Leo, you-"

"It's fine, really, it's the least I can do," the older brother sighed.

Donny nodded and let Raph take the girl up to Leo's room for him. As the red-banded turtle disappeared from sight, the younger brother began to fully notice just how banged up his older brother really was. The impact from the car appeared to have dislocated Leo's right shoulder during the initial crossing and small cuts appeared randomly along his arms, rather hard to locate due to Leo's darker shade of green.

"Alright, let's get you fixed up," Donny half-smiled and led his brother to a nearby chair.

The blue-banded turtle did nothing to stop the turtle's advances and sat silently as antibacterial spray was applied to the many abrasions followed by bandages. As Donny finished the last one, the older brother gripped the edge of the chair, waiting for the more painful relocating of his shoulder. The olive green turtle cringed as he placed both hands on the shoulder and with a firm shove, the bone was realigned with a sickening crack. As the sharp pain bit into his side, Leonardo inhaled deeply to hold back a cry and his vision turned spotty as seconds wore on and then eventually cleared. He let loose the breath and gritted his teeth as the shock wore off.

"There, good as new," Don joked.

"Heh, yeah," Leo smirked at his sibling. His concealed eyes happened to fall upon the wall clock and they widened slightly in disbelief, "Is it really that late?"

"Yup. Luckily for you two, I was only fully asleep when you guys woke me up," Donatello replied.

Leonardo couldn't help himself as a yawn slipped out and the eldest turtle stretched, revealing just how sore he really was from being topside most of the night. Offering a good night to the purple-banded turtle, he headed out the door and towards the beckoning area the turtles called a living room. Grabbing a spare pillow and blanket, the light green turtle settled down into the sofa cushions and let his eyes adjust to the new found darkness of the lair. Faintly, he could hear the retreating footsteps of Donny as the sibling returned to his room for the remainder of the night. Sighing to himself, Leo turned over onto his side and slowly slipped into a restless sleep, the memory of the incident still fresh in his mind.


	2. Like the Lion

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN NINJA TURTLES!**

The city of New York hummed quietly in the early morning as the usual hustle and bustle of its denizens gradually picked up as the sun rose over the eastern horizon, bathing the stone towers in a lush gold. The rain had let up halfway through the night and now puddles of sunlight line the streets and rooftops for all to see. Down below the city itself, the lair of the turtles was different. The hollow cavernous domain they all lived in seemed to possess a chilly air all its own. The brisk breeze flowing in from above was enough to wake an already stirring turtle who had chose to claim the rag-tag sofa as a bed.

Being a morning person himself, Leonardo usually felt refreshed after a full night of sleep and would always be up and early to greet his father: a gentle but strict-natured rat the turtles referred to as Master Splinter. This morning was different for him because here he still sat on the sofa cushions, one hand rubbing his eyes and the other settled into his lap. A drawn-out yawned left the blue-banded turtle as he rose from the makeshift bed and he blindly stumbled to the kitchen, so desperately seeking a cup of hot coffee, previously brewed by his genius of a brother, Don.

A deft green hand fumbled around the cabinet for a few seconds before successfully wrapping around a mug and then being lowered to the counter below. Leo blinked the sleepiness from his eyes as he poured the potent brew directly into the cup. The steam was already starting to unclog his fogged sense the moment it reach his snout and the light green turtle felt the ghost of a smile cross his lips as the mug heated his cold hands. Yawning once more, the eldest sibling took a seat at the kitchen table and took a small sip of the coffee. It take a moment for the caffeine to kick in, but in the meantime, Leonardo was content with letting the drink warm his cold body.

"Aw, good morning my son. No morning run for you?" Splinter greeted, having just finished his morning meditation and thus just exiting the dojo.

"Not today Splinter. I didn't sleep very well last night," Leo replied after downing another gulp of coffee, "Not to mention I'm still sore from last night's-"

There was a lull in the brief conversation as Leo cut himself off, realizing he had said too much to the rat. Splinter eyed his eldest son with a concerned, yet suspicious gaze and so taking a chance, the rat master took a seat across from the katana-wielder. The blue-banded turtle felt his face drain of its color as he figured just what his father meant by abruptly sitting down on the other side of the table. Whenever Splinter took the time out of his usual routine to do so, it was never good. Leonardo had no real experience with the situation, but he had learned enough from his baby brother Michelangelo. Obviously, he hadn't learned enough.

"Sore from what, my son?" Splinter questioned.

"Sensei, I, uh…what I meant to say was…um…" Leo stammered nervously into his mug of coffee.

"Yes?"

"Well, last night, me and Raph were out for a midnight run and we got into a tussle with someone. Um, during all of it, this lead to that and I kinda-sorta…got hit by a car…" Leo explained, the very last part coming out as no more than a whisper.

Dead silence seemed to hit the turtle from all corners as no reply was given by his rat of a father, all except a wide-eyed gaze, followed by an angry and reproachful look directly from the ninja master. The sudden change in the rat was enough to alarm Leonardo to the point of forgetting to breathe as he met the gaze of his mentor.

"You were hit by a car, is that what you said?" Splinter repeated.

"Y-yes sensei, but I-"

"My son, how can you, out of your brothers, be so reckless? Surely you must have at least seen the vehicle."

"I did, but Master, I-"

"Leonardo, enough buts out of you. I am relieved to see you sustained no lasting injuries, but I cannot let this slip by without the proper course of action. My son, you could have been injured very severely or even worse…." Master Splinter sighed, shaking his furry head, old eyes tinged with fear.

"Sensei, I'm sorry that I worried you so much, but please, may I explain what happened fully last night?" Leo tried for the last time.

Splinter paused, offering his son a stern gaze, before slowly nodding.

"As I mentioned before, Raph and I got into a fight with this guy who had the gall to jump a girl in the middle of night. Apparently during her encounter with him, she hit her head and so while we were dealing with the attacker, she must have stumbled into the street because next thing I know is that I am rushing to get her out of the way of a moving car. I managed to avoid the brunt of the blow, but the hood of the car clipped us and sent me and her tumbling behind the car. After all that, we brought her back here so Donny could fix her up and she's resting in my room right now…"

As the blue-banded turtle finished, he sank lower into the wooden chair he sat upon, hands twisting and untwisting around the mug of now luke-warm coffee. The eyes behind his bandana seemed to burn holes right through round oak table as he waited for an answer from his speculative teacher and had yet to receive a single sound from the rat. Splinter on the other hand, sighed to himself and felt a twinge of guilt at having jumped to conclusions so soon with his son. Here sat one of the most diligent students the master had ever had and just then, he had reduced the turtle to nothing more than a mere child. It saddened the old rat to see the katana wielder so small under the scrutinizing gaze, which then, he decided to cut his son a break for once.

"Leonardo. I take back what I said of you being reckless. I guess in my age, I worry so much for you and your brothers, that I forget you are older now and more capable of dealing with things then when you were all first learning ninjitsu," Splinter sighed, stroking paw on the back of his head, "So you say this girl is resting in your room? I believe it would be best to check on her wouldn't it?"

Leo's face brightened immediately as he released the mug of coffee and nodded briskly to his smiling father. Relieved at not getting in trouble, the blue-banded turtle half-walked, half-jogged upstairs to check on their mystery guest, who he figured, was still asleep after the recent events. Slowing down, Leo stopped outside the door to his room and carefully slid the entrance open, fearing to make an excess noise that would wake the girl. The room was dark, save, for a covered lamp on the nightstand near the bed, which created a soft glow, exposing her face and upper shoulders tucked underneath a grey blanket. She seemed so peaceful at this moment that the olive green turtle felt a small grin encompass his face as he slid the door shut and he stood outside of it a sparse moment, just listening.

Silence…quiet…light breathing…was all he could hear.

The older brother, content with work, headed back to the kitchen, eager to finish his coffee and perhaps even get in a light snack before Mikey was up and about creating the racketous event he called breakfast. As he reached within the fridge for a stick of butter, Leo hoped silently that when the others woke and began the day's daily routines that none would stir the girl upstairs. Like Donny said, she needed the rest and there was possibly one person who could ruin that for her: a certain orange-banded person. Leonardo began to scrape a light layering of buttering onto a bagel slice atop the counter and deciding to catch the early morning new, the turtle headed back for the living room all the while munching on what he called breakfast.

A few hours passed and it was just past 10 in the morning when Mikey could be seen leaving his sty of a room and the youngster seemed drowsier then usual. His face seemed to perk up in delight as he remembered something suddenly and the orange-banded turtle darted down the ladder and into the living room with high hopes of catching his older brother. Much to his chagrin, the only older brother he found was the grumpy form of Raph flicking through the TV channels rather impatiently.

"Hey Raphie-boy, you seen Leo anywhere?" the youngest turtle asked.

"How should I know? Go ask nerd boy over there," the red-banded turtle replied rather hotly.

Michelangelo only rolled his eyes and approached Donny who was off working on what presumably could have been once a working toaster in his lab. Getting a mischievous thought, Mikey slowed down to a sneaky trot and began to edge closer and closer to the occupied turtle, hoping to scare the living daylights out of the genius. The prankster was right behind Donatello, when out of nowhere, his brother pipes up, "Don't even think about it Mikey."

"Awww, how'd you know?"

"You pulled this same thing on me yesterday. Now, what do you want cause I'm really busy right now?" Donny questioned, setting down the toaster and screwdriver.

"I just wanted to know if you've seen Leo. He promised to go topside with me today cause they're selling that new Soul Calibur video game at the mall and I wanna get a first edition copy!"

"I haven't. Why not try his room?"

"Hmm, good idea Don, thanks!"

And with that said, the young turtle was off like a rocket, leaving a relieved Donatello to get back to his work. The olive green turtle began to hum a happy tune when just as he unscrewed another bolt from the device, his hand froze in place, the pleasing tune dropped completely and his once calm face contorted in shock, "Oh no…"

Upstairs, Leonardo rounded the corner, face buried in a worn out copy of "Art of War" by Sun Tzu. So distracted was he, that the light green turtle barely had time to move out of the way as an orange and green blur zipped by, not even acknowledging the presence of the one he sought. Leo stood for a moment, too startled to blink, and then turned with a confused and slightly annoyed look to his baby brother. His brow furrowed in confusion as he saw Mikey's hand on the knob to his bedroom door and already had it partly opened.

"Mikey, what are you doing?" Leo asked, loosely gesturing with a free hand.

"Just looking for you," Mikey responded absentmindedly, yanking the door open fully, "Woah! Dude, who's the chick?"

Dread swept over the blue-banded turtle as Mikey blurted the last statement quite loudly and within seconds, the older brother had pulled the younger turtle away from the door and shut it with a loud clack.

"Michelangelo, why did you do that? You could have easily waked her up!" Leo hissed tugging on the turtle's bandana tails forcefully.

"In my defense, I had no idea she was even in there!" Mikey cringed.

"Fine, but don't let me catch you near this door again!" Leo ordered, releasing the captured bandana.

Mikey stepped away from the older brother in displeasure, all the while, soothing the back of his head with a gentle hand, "Man Leo, that really hurt. Anyways, just who was that?"

"I don't know, I found her on the streets last night and brought her here. She stayed in my room for the night…"

Leo obviously found nothing wrong with what he just said, but he stared at his baby brother, completely baffled as to why the younger turtle was keeled over on the ground, clutching his sides in pain as a strident laughter escaped from him. It had gone on so long that poor Mikey was in tears and wasn't even laughing anymore, just dry heaving instead. Leonardo felt his patients wearing thin quickly and let out a puff of hot air as Mikey struggled to breath.

"What the heck is so funny?" Leo demanded, dragging Michelangelo up by his arm.

"Geez Leo, I didn't…*snort*…think you were that…*snort*…desperate!" he bellowed in response, breaking out in a new fit of laughter.

"Desperate? What are you-?" but Leo couldn't finish his sentence as the unintended innuendo finally sunk in. The turtle felt his face flush and take on a particular hue of red that stained his cheeks whole, "That's not what I meant and you know it!"

This did little to help his situation as the orange-banded turtle hunched over more, laughing as hard as his lungs allowed. He could barely breathe beyond this point and he failed to notice the rest of Leonardo's face turn red out of anger and embarrassment. He yearned right at that moment to smack Mikey so hard, but better judgment kept him from doing so. Breathing in deeply, Leo decided to leave his baby brother and head down to the kitchen, trying to distract his mind with the thought of the girl might want breakfast when she wakes up and to his surprise, there was a tray of pancakes on the counter with a freshly poured glass of OJ.

Making a mental note to get back at Mikey later, Leo scooped up the tray and observed to see if Mikey had gone. Relieved to see he was, Leo slipped into the room and his eyes once again fell upon the girl. She still seemed to be sleeping but her eyelids fluttered every now again, which made Leonardo cautious about his doings as he set the tray down lightly on a small table off to the left of the bed. Circling the table, the katana-bearing turtle peered closely at the girl to make sure she was comfortable. Everything seemed in order when suddenly he found a pair of silver eyes gazing back at his concealed ones. He felt his joints seize up in panic and then release suddenly as he fell back straight onto his shell in alarm. The only thing he heard was him hitting the ground and the girl's shriek of surprise.

"Oh my god, don't do that!" she shouted at him, as her figure bolted upright in bed, a hand clenching her racing heart.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know you were awake," he gasped, trying to steady his racing heart.

The two stared at each other for minutes, neither daring to move until their hearts stopped beating fast. Leo was the first to move as he realized that the girl was more startled than outright afraid of him. He fumbled in the lowlight for a chair and eventually had himself seated next to her. Now that she was awake, Leo found it hard not to stare at her eyes. It was such an unorthodox color for someone like her: silver like the moon in midwinter.

When the turtle found his voice at last, he managed to get out this one group of words, "You're not scared of me?"

"I don't know, should I be?" she responded, tilting her head in the direction of his voice, "I can't really see any details right now, just color. So when I look at you, all I see is green and blue."

"That's strange. I'll have my brother Don take a look at you after you've had breakfast. You are hungry, right?"

"Starving actually, I haven't eaten since yesterday afternoon," she admitted.

Leonardo chuckled lightly at he reached around and pulled the tray of food from the table and placed it lightly in her lap. He watched and debated what to say next as the girl ate before him, or was at least trying to. She gave up halfway through the second pancake and handed off the tray to Leo, who put it back on the table. When he turned back, she had her hand placed on her chin in deep thought. Cocking his head to the side, the blue-banded wondered to himself just what she was contemplating.

"I was wondering, it was you who saved me last night wasn't it?" she said aloud, as if mentally reading Leo's very question.

"Well, my brother helped to. I mean, we couldn't just stand by and let that thug have his way…"

"I understand that, but I'm talking about the car. It was you who pulled me out of the way. I can tell because I recognize your voice," she whispered, a smile appearing, "Thank you."

"Y-you're welcome," Leo answered.

The turtle felt the heated sensation return to his face and he was taken aback by it. Why was he blushing? Leo was used to saving people by now and not receiving recognition for it, perhaps her gentle words took him by surprise and this was just his reaction to it. Still, he wasn't used to it and pushed his clouded thoughts aside as he stood up rapidly, which sent the chair skittering backwards.

"Well I better go get my brother to take a look at you. Um, I'll be right back, I guess," he said in a hurried tone.

"W-wait! You're not going to tell me your name?" the girl quipped, following his blurry colors with silver eyes.

"M-my name? It's Leonardo, but my brothers call me Leo for short. You can too, if you'd like…"

"Leo? Like the lion…hmmm, I like it," she chuckled, "I'm Aileen Frost, but you, Leo, may call me Aila."

**A/N: So what does everyone think so far? Slowly but surely I am developing a substantial storyline for this fanfiction. If anyone would like to make any suggestions, just leave them in a message or review. Also, as the story progresses, it's going to be turned into and OC/Turtle romance. Question is if there is a specific turtle you'd like to see this happen with? It might seem obvious now, but you never know: I may change my mind later on down the plotting road ;)**


	3. Ask a question, Receive an Answer

**I DO NOT OWN NINJA TURTLES!**

It was now early afternoon and the lair of the turtles was filled with the chorus of different sounds. Muffled voices coming from the many TVs, the tinkering and clanking of machinery drifting from Donatello's lab, hoots and hollers from Mikey's room as he competed to beat his latest high score, and the newest sound to join in was the trot of Leo's feet across the cold stone floor as he made his way to the aforementioned brainy turtle's lab. Raphael glanced over the sofa to see his bandaged up older sibling heading Donny's way and curiosity got the better of the hothead as he rose from the worn out couch to find out why Leo was in a hurry. Upon arrival, the red-banded turtle only caught a snip it of the conversation.

"Are you sure?" Donny questioned, goggles propped up on his head, revealing an unmasked pair of brown eyes.

"Yes, all she said was that she sees colors," Leo nodded, mouth twitching downward in a frown.

"I see. Well, let me finish up here and I'll have a look-see in just a little," Donny finished, pulling down the goggles, "In the meantime, see if she's up for walking. I want to make sure she didn't damage any motor skills from that nasty slam to her head."

Leonardo patted his brother on the shoulder as confirmation before heading for the lab's exit only to be greeted by Raph. The younger turtle arched an eye ridge to the blue-banded turtle, but only received a quaint shrug as the katana-wielder walked past. Snorting in annoyance, the sai-carrying turtle went back to sitting on the couch, content for the moment to finish what he had been watching. Not far away, a pair of gentle eyes watched from the dojo doorway. Thinking that things seemed to be turning in the right path, Splinter returned to the sanctum to meditate, the only sound being the soft clacking of his walking stick as the old rat disappeared within.

Meanwhile upstairs, Leo had just arrived at his bedroom door and opened it casually to see Aila sitting cross-legged on the bed, as if she'd been waiting for the turtle's return. Entering, he approached the edge of the bed and lightly tapped her shoulder. The ebony-haired girl jumped at the unexpected touch and a half smirk glued itself to her face, "You know, you have really got to warn me next time."

"Heh, sorry. Are you up for a short walk? Donny wants to see if your motor skills are working," Leo said.

"Sure, I was getting a little cramped in the legs just sitting here," she joked, swinging a leg over the bed and then the other.

Taking a hand in hers, the blue-banded turtle helped Aila to her feet and the two kept up a steady pace as they headed for the door and for the downstairs level. A frustrated breath left Aileen as she stumbled once or twice and almost ran right into the wall. Leo smiled as she would steady out again, thinking she was getting the hang of it when yet again she would take a nosedive for the floor and it was left to the turtle to catch her. When the pair arrived at the ladder leading to the bottom floor, Leo wrapped a secure arm around the girl and slid down the metal rungs with ease.

"Ladder," he stated as he set her down and she nodded.

Aileen blinked as few times, the blending of all the colors in her vision made is slightly disorienting at first, but eventually she could piece together the outlines of objects starting from the colors ended and others began. She was in awe of just how wide the place was that Leo and his brothers called a home and she had yet to even see the entire lair itself. Brushing a few strands of hair out of her face, Aila stretched somewhat now in the open space, happy to be able to move about. The girl had to be careful though because too much movement sent her head whirling from the massive migraine that had built up over the morning.

Leonardo struggled to stifle a yawn that managed to escape his lips and the blue-banded turtle watched his new friend curiously to get his mind off the exhaustion, "So, um, Aila…do you know any martial arts?"

"Martial Arts? Sorta…I was always fascinated by the different styles so I would go to the library to check out books on the forms. All I ever learned were the basics of Kung Fu and one or two katas of Ninjitsu," she explained, back straightening and headed towards what she though was the sound of a TV.

The many television screens all displayed the same thing: one TV and then the next a flicker of light as the channel was changed. Raphael gripped the remote rather tightly as he let the channel surfing stall on the local news station. The recent news playing was focusing on a string of rash robberies that no one has been able to figure out who the culprit was. All the police had to go by were a few vague descriptions of men in black working together in mass numbers, but even then they can't be sure what was exactly going down. His eyes narrowed in annoyance as the casting droned on, switching back and forth between each news reporter. The dark green turtle sneered slightly and let the volume of the TV drop to a minimum.

"It's a shame what New York has come to these days isn't it?" a female voice asked him from behind.

Raph cocked his head over his shoulder to find Aileen staring blankly at the flickering appliances. Clearing his throat to get her attention, the hothead stood up and faced her way.

"Yea, it is. So I see yer fine," he answered, his New Jersey accent slurring part of the words.

"Yup, thanks to you guys, whoever you are," Aileen smiled.

"Eh, don't mention it," Raph said, crossing his arms as the remote slid down to the cushions.

Leo, seeing the two were busy, took the opportunity to head back to Donatello to see if his brainy brother was any closer to be done with his latest project. His entrance into the lab brought no relief to his intentions as the blue-banded caught wind of a sulfuric smell drifting from the lab. This could mean one of two things: Donny is mixing chemicals or Mikey had eggs for breakfast. Either way, it was best to avoid the source, much to Leo's chagrin. Shaking his head in light measure, the oldest turtle turned on his heel and went straight back to the living room.

Upstairs, Mikey rummaged about in his room looking for his game guy which has mysteriously disappeared. Comic books flew and DVDs skittered across the brick floor. The bed in the corner of the room was practically mauled, stripped of its sheets, and pillows strewn in the far corners. The youngest turtle looked up frantically, eyes darting about the war zone of his room and he jumped to his feet and yelled out, "Where is it?"

Several heads looked up in the direction of Michelangelo's scream and a resonating boom left Donatello's lab as he oviously mixed in too much of one chemical in another. Leo felt a smiling creeping across his face as he struggled to suppress a laugh. In his hands, the ninja held the stolen game guy. Raph glanced over to his older brother and smirked while arching an eye ridge.

"Do I wanna know?"

"Payback. Let's just leave it at that."

"Whateva, fearless leader," Raphael sniggered.

Aileen listened intently to the ongoings of the siblings and her brow furrowed in confusion.

"There always like this. Hopefully it won't spread," Donny explained, emerging from his lab a charred mess. "I'm Donny, by the way. I'll be happy to take a look at your eyes if you have a minute."

"Thanks," Aileen said, grabbing Donatello by the wrist and following him to the kitchen while his lab aired out.

"Alright just have a seat here and I'll get my kit," the purple-banded turtle said as he helped her.

The terrapin disappeared and who took his place next was a less scaly figure. Master Splinter hummed to himself as he prepared a pot of green tea. His paws mixed the ingredients and inside the kettle they went as it was set to boil above a low flame. The old master turned his attention to Aileen who stared at the rough table blankly; her silver eyes a smoky color.

"Do not fret, young one. It is not a misfortune what has happened to you. Now you have time to see with your mind instead of your eyes," he offered as he watched her head move up to him.

"Thank you…I'll keep it in mind," Aileen smiled. "Are you their father?"

"So to speak, yes."

"May I ask something?"

"Anything, child."

"What are you? What are they?"

Master Splinter paused, stunned by her question but deep down, the rat knew this question would come up eventually if the girl was to be staying with them for a period of time.

"Perhaps the answer is best heard when you have regained your vision. Then we shall see," he finally answered, hoping Aileen would not be obstinate on the situation.

"I understand," she whispered.

**A/N: Sorry about the late entry and how short it is. There's been a lot going on this summer but I will most likely update with 2 or 3 new chapters in a few weeks. Again, so sorry for my absence lol**


	4. A Friendly Touch

**I DO NOT OWN NINJA TURTLES!**

Days passed and the family of ninjas slowly grew used to Aileen's presence within the lair. Aila mostly spent her time talking to the brothers to fill in the emptiness of her sight. On one particular occasion, Miss Frost found herself lured to the couch one evening. To her left on the worn out sofa, Leonardo sat. Mikey sat on the floor, legs crossed underneath the coffee table in front of them. The remaining duo of turtles sat across from one another, Raphael seated in the armchair while Donatello took up residence on a nearby beach chair.

"So Aila, how's the whole 'not-seeing' thing going for you?" Mikey asked innocently, his hand reaching into a nearby bag of chips.

Directing her attention to the rustle of the chips, the silver-eyed girl responded, "Well, I guess…it's still really hard to get around. If it wasn't for you guys, I'd probably end up hurting myself."

"Well don't worry, this week is almost up and I can guarantee that you'll get your sight back," Donny chimed in, his masked eyes looking up from the newspaper he was reading.

"Yeah, but Don, didn't ya say she had 3 ta 4 weeks before that happens?" a certain red-banded cynic asked.

"Thanks for the reminder Raph," Aileen sighed jokingly.

Aileen felt the sofa cushions shift slightly as Leo adjusted his position by tucking one leg under another. This was the first time all evening that Aileen realized that the elder turtle has yet to say one word in the entire conversation. Furrowing her brow, her eyes flickered over to where she assumed the turtle sat and her head tilted to the side slightly as she watched him through the blurriness of the colors.

"Leo?" she voiced.

A sudden "Huh?" was his reply, clueing her in that apparently Leonardo's mind was somewhere completely else. Turning her head fully to his direction, Aila inquired if the blue-banded ninja was alright.

"Uh, yeah. I've just been thinking. Aileen, do you have a family?"

"Yes and no…" she whispered, "My parents, my parents died when I was really little. It's all a massive blur for me and I went to live with my Aunt Catherine. She took care of me growing up but nowadays, it's like that role has reversed…."

"What do you mean exactly?" Donny asked, curiosity peaked.

"She's been into heavy drinking lately. You see, she works for a big business firm and money's been kind of tight for the company and pretty much, the last time she went, they had to slash her paycheck in half and now instead of saving money like a smart person, she's spiraled into depression and she won't get help. So, I had to go out and get a job to support her and her drinking habits…"

"Why do ya do it?" Raph piped up. "If all she does is waste her money, why help?"

"Why? She's all the family I have Raphael and she took me in when I was little. I'm obligated to help her."

As the conversation died down, an uneasy tension seemed to settle down upon the living room's occupants. Mikey traced circles on the coffee table, while Donny rolled and unrolled the finished newspaper. Raph sat back into the armchair his eyes moving from Aileen to Leonardo, who sat staring at the floor with a concealed grimace, perhaps regretting bringing up the topic in the first. Aileen was a whole different story as the raven-haired seventeen year old sat on the cushion edge, hands clenched on her lap, her face having taken a tightened expression.

Letting out an awkward sigh, the ninja brainiac of the group risked a glance to the digital clock of the VCR hooked up to the TV set. In dim, green numbers the small clock flashed that it was a quarter past eleven and a perfect reason to excuse himself from the conversation graced Donatello's mind.

"Oh boy, would you look at the time. It sure is getting late," Don fake-yawned, even went as far as to mock stretch his arms. "I guess I'll be off to bed. G'night everyone!"

Several despondent good nights reached Donny as he walked out of the room. This left the other four to sit and try desperately to salvage what was left of the original conversation. It was Leo who came to the rescue, "Family is family. No matter how you look at it, I guess. You just can't choose who your family is…"

"Yeah, well, sometimes I wish I had that option, Leo…" Aileen whispered, rubbing her eye frantically with her turtleneck's sleeve.

The blue-banded turtle gritted his teeth hearing a small sniffling noise coming from Aila as she tried to hide the fact she was crying. His heart fell seeing her like this. No one to really call family. Growing up had been hard for himself, what with three brothers, a single father, and a once cramped place to call home. Thinking back, the jade green turtle was grateful for what he had. Looking at his brothers at that precise moment, he found them to be eyeing Aileen as well, a mutual feeling of being sorry filling the air as they did.

Mikey was the first to react, younger sibling senses kicking in. Stretching his numb legs slightly, the orange-banded joker rose unsteadily and let the blood flow back into them before stepping around the coffee table and he placed a hand on Aileen's knee.

"Aila?" he started.

"Yes, Mike?"

"I know you've had it rough and all, but I'm pretty sure things are looking up aren't they?"

There was a slight pause as Aileen considered Michelangelo's words and then she said, "You're right. I mean, I did get to meet you four goofballs didn't I?"

Mikey couldn't help but laugh as Aileen smiled up at him. Leo shook his head in disbelief, grinning himself. Did Mikey really just do that? He couldn't be sure if he was dreaming or not, but for the time being he was grateful for his brother's more pushy side of adding in his two-cents to every conversation.

**A/N: Again, sorry for the short chapter. School just started and I haven't had much time. Well hope you all like this chapter. Remember to Read and Review please ^_^**


	5. New Faces

**I DO NOT OWN NINJA TURTLES!**

It was early afternoon the next day and Mikey was busy fixing lunch for the rest of the waiting family of 5 and guest. The scent of grilled cheese wafted in from the open kitchen and the faintest sizzling could be heard. Aileen grimaced as her stomach growled and a quaint chuckle followed by the turtle next to her on the couch. Rolling her eyes, she crossed her arms in a playful manner to act angry. The only thing that could have spoiled her plan was another rumble of hunger.

"See, I told you it would be bad to skip breakfast."

"Yeah, yeah. So sue me if I felt like sleeping in a little," she answered, smelling the cheese again and she couldn't help but breathe in a large amount of it.

"Hehe. You're so odd, Aila."

"Speak for yourself, Leo. You're the one picking on the poor defenseless blind girl!"

"Defenseless? Yeah right. You nearly gave me a black eye this morning!" he retorted, smiling broadly.

"This'll be the third time I say this Mr. Ninja: I do not like being snuck up on! So next time, knock," she pronounced.

"It's my room, so I shouldn't have to knock, Miss Frost."

Leo watched Aileen and noticed through the entire argument, the girl had been trying to keep a straight face and this one little detail is what caused the blue-banded turtle to lose his composure and burst out laughing followed by Aila herself. By the time they got their laughter under control, Mikey had called that it was lunchtime three times in a row and the pair was greeted by said impatient turtle as they approached the table where the others sat already-mid meal.

"We'll settle this later," Aileen smiled and let Mikey lead her to a chair to sit.

"I'll hold you to that bet," Leo jibed back and grabbed his own plate, ready for lunch

Soon lunch had passed and each of the terrapin ninjas found new activities to occupy the remainder of the afternoon within their lair, leaving Aileen to discuss different topics with Master Splinter. The aged rodent was glad to have a fresh mind to indulge in and he picked up on discussing different teas with her. The seventeen year old smiled and asked him if Green tea was his only favorite.

"Well, Green tea has always held a special place, but I also favor Genmaicha tea lately," the master replied, his tail swishing in thought.

"I love Genmaicha! The nutty flavor is the best," she responded, "But I really enjoy a good cup of Kokei Cha."

Surprised by her knowledge of teas, the rat went on to inquire further on the subject, which Aileen happily obliged him in. While the conversation carried on, a sparring match rolled on out in the main training area. Raph watched Michelangelo closely, his mask-covered eyes searching for a way in. Mikey let one of his infamous cockiness-filled grins loose and he stepped aside as Raphael lunged at him. The orange-banded turtle laughed and took immediate delight as his older brother growled in frustration turning around and he lunged again at the younger sibling. Much to his chagrin, Mikey side-stepped his attack and gave the dark green turtle a good shove in the back, sending him careening forward into a pile of boxes.

"Nice fall, Raphael! Just come on back if you want some of that," he snickered, approaching the collapsed ninja.

"You've had it Mikey. Bro or no, you've gotta go!" Raph responded.

The red-banded turtle stood and swung at his brother full force with a precise reverse punch, three roundhouse kicks and, to top it off, a dragon punch. Each rage-fueled attempt to hit Mikey was pointless as the sea-green terrapin dodged each one. The two brothers continued to spar as Donatello and Leonardo walked in, curious to see what all the crashing was about as Raph got flung into a nearby table, splintering it on impact. Even that last bang was enough to draw Master Splinter and Aileen from the kitchen. The pair soon joined the others watching as Raph picked himself up and Mikey walked towards them, declaring himself the winner.

Not far behind, Raph was on his knees as his tri-knuckled hand wrapped itself around the scrap iron of the table's leg. Blinded by his fury, the older brother raced after Michelangelo and delivered a harsh kick square in the younger sibling's shell. Mikey flew forward and in the split second he rolled over, Raph was on top of him, hand poised to bring the iron down on Mike's face.

"Raph, don't!" Mike pleaded, covering his head with his arms.

Aileen felt a rush of wind beside herself and looking over, she saw a blur of green and blue as Leo rushed to intervene before his brother was seriously hurt. The blue-banded turtle skidded behind the sai-wielder and pinned his arm in his grip.

"Raphael, have you lost your mind?" he breathed, struggling to keep the other ninja at bay.

The others hurried to the group's side, leaving Aila to watch in panic as the family chaos ensued. While Raph was occupied with Leo, Donny crouched down and dragged the youngest turtle out from underneath the older one. A quick look over brought relief to the brainiac to see his bro wasn't hurt. Seeing Donny and Mikey, Raph let loose the breath he'd been holding in and the iron table leg clattered to the floor.

"I…Leo…Mikey…I…" Raph tried to say but ended his sentence in a heated shush.

"Oh my son, so much anger. Rage is a monster that will destroy you from within. Raphael, a true warrior finds balance in all things," Master Splinted said, watching his son carefully.

"Master Splinta, I…uh…I g-gotta get some air!" he voiced, pushing aside Donny and making a hasty jog to the lair's exit.

"Raph, wait!" Aileen called out and stuck out her hand to grab his shoulder.

The red-banded terrapin slowed slightly, but kept going. Aileen's hand brushed his arm briefly, but the touch did nothing for the abashed turtle. As soon as his form disappeared, Aila felt an arm slipping around her in a friendly side-hug. She continued to stare after the sai-wielder until eventually she sighed and absent-mindedly leaned into the embrace.

"Don't mind him. This is…well, normal, for Raph. He'll blow of his steam and come back later," Leo whispered, glancing down at her.

"I understand, I just don't feel like it's a good idea for him to run off on his own like that," she answered.

Meanwhile, topside, Raphel found himself atop a building roof. The sky twinkled with the sparse stars one can see at night from a big city. The moon shone bright and the turtle leaned against the edge staring at the street below, letting the cool night breeze wash over his hot skin.

"What's wrong with me?" he shouted, fist flying out at nothing but empty air. "I almost ki- no…hurt Mikey. Aila…I just left her hangin' there…"

Shaking his head, the dark green turtle climbed onto the edge of the building and dropped down on its fire escape. Before making up his mind what to do, his eye caught a group of Purple Dragons surrounding a woman. One yanked her purse away from her and the other two just cackled as he sifted through it in search of cash. Watching in disbelief, he felt his patience ticking away as he crouched and got ready to spring on them. There was nothing in the world that would have stopped him from doing this, but this particular night just wanted to be different. Right at the mouth of the alley under the streetlight, stood a rather toned man with piercing blue eyes, blackish-blue hair and on his face was a white hockey mask. He wore a simple maroon muscle shirt, blue jogging pants, navy blue sneakers and on his back rested a golf bag, filled with an assortment of sports equipment. The one he chose to wield was a taped up hockey stick.

"Purple Dragons….! Come out and play…!" he taunted, bashing the hockey stick against a garbage lid and slowly walking forward.

"It's that whacko in the hockey mask!" one of the purple dragons pointed out. "Let's get 'im!"

The trio of gang members charged at the vigilante, but were no match as he swung his hockey stick. He nailed one of them right in the head, causing the purple dragon to go down immediately. The other two circled left and right trying to get the drop on the black/blue-haired man, but both got knocked down with a harsh swing of the hockey stick. One of the members closest to the vigilante tried to crawl away but froze in fear as the hockey-masked would-be hero towered over the purple dragon.

"No mercy, scum! I'm puttin' you punks out of business, permanently!" he shouted and raised the hockey stick above his head.

"That guy's outta control," Raph said and took this moment to jump in.

The red-banded turtle landed without a sound and his hand wrapped around the stick, forcing it from the man's hands.

"Woah, hey!" he shouted turning around and was surprised to find a giant turtle was the culprit.

"Easy there, cowboy. They're down. Ya did good. So relax!" Raph said, eyeing him dangerously.

During their confrontation, the cowardly Purple Dragons took their chance and bolted. The vigilante glared after them in silent anger and then focused back on the terrapin before him.

"You let 'em get away!" he seethed. "Stay outta my business, freak!"

The man swung his arm around and decked Raphael right on the face, sending the ninja falling backwards. Retrieving his hockey stick, the vigilante raced after the fleeing gang members. Dazed slightly, the sai-wielder sat up in brief thought and then decided to pursue after him. As Raph, disappeared, the woman that had been ganged up on, picked up her purse and fished her phone out of it.

"Hello, operator?...yes…I'd like you to connect me to the best therapist in New York City, please."

**A/N: Hey everyone! Nightwillow here :) Thanks for reading my story so far and the reviews have been really helpful. So what do my readers think so far of the storyline I'm working out amidst the turtles? Anyone have suggestions that might need to be changed? Or maybe some ideas about things you'd like to see? Well message me in a review or anyway else! It's been great and sit tight, chapter 6 is on it's way! Read and Review! Plz and Thank you :D**


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